Marauders: First Year Mischief
by LadyClassical
Summary: We all remember Harry's first days at Hogwarts in 1991. But what about his father and the rest of the Marauders, twenty years prior? Take a time machine back to 1971 for some lighthearted, middle-school-style fun...as long as you solemnly swear that you're up to no good!
1. Hogwarts Express

_September 1_ , _1971_

 _King's Cross Station_

Just as it was at the beginning of every term, Platform 9 and 3/4 was hectic. Families were seeing their children off; young witches and wizards were dragging heavy trunks, sometimes accompanied by owls, brooms, cats, toads or all other kinds of animals.

First-year James Potter was running late because he'd forgotten his broomstick at home and they had to go back; and he'd saved packing for the last minute anyway, of course. His mom had barely just gotten him out of bed, so his dark hair was even more unkempt than usual. His glasses were slipping down his nose as he raced through the crowd.

Meanwhile, there was another first-year who was supposed to be getting on the train—Sirius Black. His parents both looked irritated about something, plus his mother was trying to restrain a screaming kindergarten-age child.

"Regulus, STOP SCREAMING!" Sirius shouted at him.

"Don't you yell at your brother!" Mrs. Black screeched, but then she was the one who did the screaming as Regulus took off into the crowd.

"REGULUS!" Sirius hollered in frustration, tearing into the crowd after his kid brother. "I'M GOING TO MISS THE—hey, watch the elbows, mate!"

Sirius had just collided headlong into James, who had been pelting towards the train, albeit slowed a little by his broomstick and trunk.

"Sorry," said James.

The two strangers blinked for a minute, then Sirius remembered his mission. "You seen a little brat about this tall running through the crowd, kinda looks like me, only way more spoiled?"

"No, but I'll help you look for him!" James and Sirius were both running through the crowd, until little Regulus finally smacked into the behind of a huge witch, knocking him onto the ground and stunning him for a bit. James snatched him up and handed him to Sirius.

"Thanks!" Sirius grinned. "Now I won't have to deal with him until Winter Break."

"Hey, I'll save a seat for you in Compartment 2, okay?" James called over his shoulder.

"Right!" Sirius confirmed, then went to return Regulus to his mother.

James Potter made it onto the train with hardly any time to spare. Just like he promised the boy he'd bumped into on the train platform, he rushed to Compartment 2 to save a seat. It was empty, save for one student.

"Hey!" James smiled. "Mind if I sit here? Save a seat for my friend too?"

The boy in the compartment just made a sort of whimpering noise. James was confused because at first he couldn't see his face, but then he lowered the thick book he was reading. His hair was mostly neat, although sticking up in places, and it was a gentle, light brown. There was a big scratch mark across the bridge of his nose, as well as quite a few more on his bright-red cheeks; they all had the pink, slightly puffy look of cuts that had been there for a while but were still healing. One hand had been holding the book; the other was holding a gigantic chocolate bar, half of which was already gone. Upon closer inspection, young James saw that this boy was visibly shaking, but he still wanted to be friendly.

"What's your name?" James asked, sitting down next to the boy. "My name's James Potter, but you can call me James. I like flying on my broom, do you? What book are you reading? How's that chocolate taste? WOAH, how'd you get those scratches?"

The boy made another whimpering noise, this time much louder, and curled into a ball.

"Hey!" James prodded him with the end of his broomstick. "I'm talking to you!"

"I made it!" Sirius panted, slipping into the compartment and shutting the door behind him. "By the way, I forgot to ask—what's your name?"

"I'm James Potter," said James. "You?"

"Sirius Black."

"I hope we get sorted into the same House!" James was happy to meet a social butterfly like him. "I also met another new friend, but he didn't really talk to me. He wouldn't tell me his name."

"Weird." Sirius looked at the third boy, who was still in the fetal position, seemingly mortified.

Just then the bell clanged, and the train gave a jolt. The brown-haired boy's face went from red to almost completely pale. James enjoyed the feeling because it reminded him of flying, but he turned to his seatmate with a look of concern.

"Oh, you get motion sickness, do you?" James asked, and the pale boy nodded. "That sucks, especially if you want to play Quidditch. Luckily, I never get it."

"All aboard!" yelled the conductor, and the bell clanged. Sirius and James cheered; they were finally getting to go to Hogwarts! They grabbed onto the poles sitting next to the seats so they wouldn't fall off when the train moved. The third boy had his hands over his mouth, though, so he couldn't, and when the train jerked violently, he was dislodged from his seat and went flying onto the floor, smacking his head onto the ground. James and Sirius hurried to pick him up, and when they plunked him back into his seat, he looked as if he was going to cry.

"Are you okay?" Sirius asked, but then the train hit a huge bump in the tracks; most older students would have hit their heads on the ceiling, but since the three boys in the compartment were all around the same size and not very big, they were protected. In fact, James and Sirius rather liked it.

"Wanna hear a train joke?" said James.

"Hit me," said Sirius.

"Okay…what happened to the wizard who took the 5 o'clock train home?"

"I dunno, what?"

"He had to bring it back!"

The two of them exploded into laughter, while the train-sick boy looked further agitated. The door to the compartment slid open and there was a girl standing there.

"Hi," she said. "There were no other compartments that would take first years, is it okay if I sit here?"

The girl had her dark-red hair pinned back slightly with a barrette that looked like a lily; she was wearing a green T-shirt and jeans shorts. She was smiling brightly, with her eyes as well as her lips.

"Sure," said James casually. "What's your name?"

"Lily Evans," she replied. "Sorry about walking in on you and your friends like I did. I was a little late—you know, my family's all Muggles, they don't understand about stuff like this—"

"Wow, your family's Muggles? That's—" James had, at first, been talking to Lily like she was anyone else, but he froze when his hazel eyes met her green ones and they finally got a good look at each other. For once, his mouth snapped shut, and a little bit of color rose in his cheeks; James Potter wore the unmistakable expression of an eleven-year-old boy who had felt the stirrings of love for the first time.

"It's what?" Lily looked bewildered.

"That's…that's really cool." James smiled a bit.

"Thanks!" Lily smiled back, then her smile faded slightly as she noticed the train-sick boy. "Say, is he all right?"

"We don't know," said Sirius. "He won't talk. But we think he has train sickness."

Lily grabbed onto the poles next to the seats and made her way over to the seat next to the train-sick boy, who had a look on his face like he was about to be executed.

"Hi, I'm Lily," she said sweetly. "I used to get motion-sick too. But my mom taught me a good trick that helps. Want me to show you?"

The train-sick boy nodded, so Lily told him to hold out one of his wrists. Lily was a little surprised when she saw that he had halfway-healed scratches on his arms like the ones he had on his face, but unlike James, she had enough decency not to ask about it.

"This is called a pressure point," she explained, pointing to his wrist. "If you gently press here, it makes you feel a little less sick. You should also take nice deep breaths."

After some help from Lily, some color finally came back into the boy's face, and for the first time, they saw him smile.

"What's your name?" she asked, but he looked frightened again, so she continued, "It's okay. Everyone is scared on the first day of Hogwarts."

" _I'm_ not scared," said James loudly, but she ignored him.

"Because it's a new place, maybe your first night away from home, and you don't know anyone," Lily continued soothingly. "But soon you meet new friends, and you learn new things, and it's not just a place to get an education, it's a place to have an adventure."

"Besides, you already have three friends," Sirius reminded him. "Me, James, and Lily. Now will you tell us your name already?"

"R-Remus," he said, his voice sounding a little squeaky. "Remus Lupin."

"Nice to meet you." Sirius was now smiling, but James was just gaping at Lily, amazed at how she had gotten Remus to talk. Apparently, poking him with a broom had not been the way to go. The flush still in his cheeks, he squeezed in between her and Sirius, about to speak, when the compartment door slid open yet again.

"Sevs!" Lily shrieked. "Oh my God, I thought you hadn't made it!"

"Of _course_ I made it," said the boy at the door in a very nasal voice.

"Well, wait are you waiting for, come sit down!" Lily ran up and grabbed his hand, then led him to sit down next to her, on the other side of the compartment, so that there was Remus sitting in the corner, James sitting next to him, then Sirius, and finally Lily, encouraging the newest person to sit near her.

"Who's this?" Sirius asked apathetically, shoving a piece of gum into his mouth and chewing it loudly.

"This is my best friend, Severus Snape!" Lily giggled. "Isn't he great? He's coming to Hogwarts too! He wants to become a Potions Master!"

"Woo!" James waved his hand in front of his nose exaggeratedly. "What smells like old gym socks?"

Snape's black eyes flickered to James, then back to Lily. James had a point; Snape didn't smell very good, and his hair was a bit greasy, but Lily didn't seem impressed.

"That's not nice!" she told him, looking upset. "Severus is a good person."

"Does he play Quidditch?" James asked. "I can play Quidditch. See that broom there? It's mine! It's a 1971 Cleansweep! I got it for my birthday. I'm really good, so I'm gonna play when we get to Hogwarts…"

"Let's see if they let a first year join the team," Lily said coolly. "Come on, Severus, do you want to see if the snack witch is coming by?"

"You'll be back?" Remus asked quietly.

"Of course," said Lily, leading Snape out of the compartment.

"What's a girl like her doing with a slimeball like him?" James exploded, as soon as the door slid shut. "Just look at him, he's full of Dark Magic! And he smells horrible! I'd bet my Cleansweep he doesn't use deodorant! She smelled nice, maybe he could borrow hers…"

"I don't think girls wear deodorant," said Sirius knowingly. "They smell that good naturally. They're not _boys_ , you know."

"Of course girls wear deodorant." Remus looked slightly irritated. "They might be girls, but they're still _human_."

"We'll leave that one as undecided, then," said James thoughtfully, as though they were studying for a test. "But it _is_ medically impossible for a girl to fart."

"No, that one's not true," said Sirius. "See, every time we have my Aunt Elladora 'round for dinner—she's the one who likes cutting off elf heads—"

"She what?!" Remus's head spun around.

"Yeah, she started the tradition of beheading house-elves when they became too old to carry tea trays," Sirius explained, "and then we mount their heads on the wall. The one we have now is named Kreacher and I can't stand him, it'll be great see him beheaded—"

"Your mom lets you _watch_?" James and Remus both asked at the same time; James looked excited, while Remus looked horrified.

"Oh yeah. It's a ceremony."

" _Cool!_ " said James. "You sure sound like you have an interesting family."

"Interesting is one way to put it," said Sirius. "You know that kid, my brother—Regulus? Well, we had his Tapestry Ceremony a couple months ago when he turned five. It was _so_ boring, and like my parents don't spoil him enough already…See, in my family, you get put on the family tree, and if you do something bad, you get burned off of it."

"Have you been burned off of yours?" Remus asked.

"No, but I can't wait 'till I am."

"When I do something bad," said James, in a mock matter-of-fact tone, "my mom just grounds me."

Sirius burst out laughing, and Remus did too this time. The compartment door slid open at just the time James wanted—with the entire compartment laughing their heads off at a joke he had just made. Lily and Snape were standing there.

"The snacks witch is coming by soon," said Lily. "Later the blankets witch will be too, so we can take a nap if we want. It's going to be hours until we get to Hogwarts, you know."

"Lily! Hey, Lily!" said James. "Sirius here was just telling us about how his aunt cuts off elf heads and his mom's gonna burn him off his family tapestry!"

Now it was Lily's turn to look horrified.

"Well, my family is stupid," said Sirius quickly, remembering suddenly what his parents thought of witches like Lily, who came from Muggle-born families. One of the reasons why they weren't particularly happy with Sirius was that he showed no signs of being a blood purist like they were.

Snape was already sitting down at that point, next to Sirius. James spread his legs wider apart, taking up as much space as he could, and rubbed the back of his hair with one hand, letting out a loud, agitated sigh; he wanted Snape to leave, and he wanted him to leave now.

Lily wasn't sitting down like Snape was, so when the train suddenly sped up, she was swept off her feet and with a loud shriek she face-planted into the laps of Snape and Sirius.

"Better watch out there, Lily," said Sirius, standing up and hoisting Lily up by the armpits. Then he set her down, only to be knocked onto the ground too. With a grunt, he grabbed the side of the seat and wrenched himself into the remaining space between Snape and Lily.

"So sorry," he told them.

"Not at all," Lily said distractedly. Now, she was sitting next to James, with Sirius on her other side. James grinned at her and Sirius both; Snape glowered; Remus moaned with pain, because he was feeling the beginnings of a headache. This was going to be a long ride.


	2. Sorting Hat

The first years were all crowded into the hall in one big pack, but at Professor McGonagall's urgings, they had formed a line. Sirius and James knew they were just about to be Sorted; Sirius knew his mother would be angry if he got put anywhere other than Slytherin, but somehow…he didn't care. James saw himself as a Gryffindor already. Remus didn't know where he'd be put, he was just quite nervous, and Lily was watching him with concern.

Just as they'd always imagined it, the Great Hall was splendid. It was stormy out tonight, so it looked like it should be raining down on them, but it wasn't. Instead they just heard the sound of rain on the roof as the chair was brought out and the Sorting Hat was placed upon it.

Sirius, out of the group, was first to be called: "BLACK, SIRIUS!"

"Ah, yes," said the Sorting Hat's voice, so only Sirius could hear it. "We have another Black…but you seem to be…different than the rest."

 _Well, that's a shocker_ , thought Sirius.

"I never thought I'd say it to a Black, but...GRYFFINDOR!"

Sirius, beaming, shouted to James, "Well, I'm dead!" and sauntered over to the cheering Gryffindors. It wasn't much longer until they got to Lily.

"EVANS, LILY!"

"You're a very kind and loyal girl," said the Sorting Hat. "But you are incredibly brave as well. You have the power to love—so strong, it could protect anything. Better be…GRYFFINDOR!"

"LUPIN, REMUS!"

"Wasn't easy getting you here, was it, Remus?"

 _Don't remind me, Sorting Hat._

"Hmm, you seem very intelligent—overall, a good guy though, too. I sense you will do very well in your classes at school."

 _So which will it be, then? Ravenclaw or Hufflepuff?_

"Now hold on there! You have more strength in you than you might think! I think you would do best in…GRYFFINDOR!"

Remus headed to the Gryffindor table where Sirius and Lily were already waiting for him. Next, the Sorting Hat was ready for—

"POTTER, JAMES!"

"I sense a troublemaker lurking underneath this hat. You can be a bit childish at times."

 _Got me there._

"But someday, you will be a very noble man."

 _Thanks. Sounds interesting. But can we get to the main event?_

"As you wish! I think such a noble man belongs in…GRYFFINDOR!"

James was happy to be in the same house as Lily; he was wondering if the Sorting Hat had taken that into account as well, and just hadn't told him. All the Gryffindors were cheering wildly; Sirius and Remus looked ecstatic that he'd been Sorted into the same House as they were. They watched as the remaining first years got Sorted; James was relieved that Snape got sorted into Slytherin as soon as the Sorting Hat touched his head (maybe it just didn't want to deal with all that grease). It would be a lot harder for Snape to get at Lily if they were in different Houses, he figured.

They had the beginning-of-year feast, and when they were done, it was time to get their room assignments. The two Gryffindor prefects began to lead the students to the Gryffindor common room.

"I hope we three get a room together," Sirius said to Remus and James. "Won't it be great?"

"It's my first night away from home, like Lily said," Remus admitted, "so I don't know."

"Well, you won't be alone," James reminded him. "You'll have us as your roommates. The older rooms have four beds, and the newer ones have five. So we'll have at least one more roommate to get to know too."

"Mr. Lupin, I need to see you for a moment," Professor McGonagall cut in, grabbing Remus by his arm.

"I-I'll meet you in the dorms," Remus stammered as the two of them hurried away.

Finally, the rest of them got to the Gryffindor portrait hole. Both of the Prefects were very strict, so they yelled at the boys and girls to get to their respective dorm rooms. Each student was handed a little slip of paper with a room number on it.

"If you don't like your room assignments, please see the Head Girl or Head Boy," one of the Prefects snapped, turning around and leaving the common room to patrol the hallways for an hour after bedtime, as Prefects had to do.

"If you don't like your room assignments, tough," the other said under his breath as he followed.


	3. Gryffindor Tower

Sirius was the first to enter his dorm room. It apparently was one of the older ones, because it had only four beds. Nevertheless, they were nice beds, four-posters with purple hangings if you wanted some privacy. Also, he was relieved that his luggage had already been brought up for him. When he saw a familiar-looking broom near one of the four trunks, he felt hopeful—maybe that broom belonged to James, and they had a room together! Oh, well, even if they didn't, he could still request it.

The next person to enter the room was a pudgy little boy with big ears and buck teeth. When he saw Sirius, he introduced himself as Peter Pettigrew. Sirius was happy to meet him, then flopped back on one of the beds. They would have to draw straws for beds later, he imagined, because most likely all four of them would want to have the bed near the big bay window that looked out over the courtyard. The bed nearest to the bathroom was good too, though. Then there were the two beds in the middle. There were also four desks and two big wardrobes.

Sirius's prayers were answered when James was the next Hogwarts student to walk into the dorm room.

"James!" he shouted.

"Sirius!" James shouted back.

"Peter," said Pettigrew.

"We just have to wait for our fourth roommate to get here," Sirius said in a businesslike tone. "I hope it's Remus Lupin, he seems nice enough…"

"We're going to rule the school, aren't we, Sirius?" James said excitedly. "We'll be the most popular first years in no time."

That was when they heard a knock on the door. Sirius ran to open it and, sure enough, it was Remus. True, he didn't look so good after climbing all the way up to Gryffindor tower, but maybe he was just tired. Also, he looked nervous, but they were used to that by now. For some reason, Remus appeared to be very nervous about going to school—he seemed to think that if he made one mistake, he'd be sent home.

"Remus, it's you!" James smiled. "That's what we were hoping for! What kept you? What did McGonagall want?"

"Oh…nothing important," said Remus, turning red. "Anyway, what are you all up to? Unpacking?"

"Actually, we were about to get into an argument about who gets which bed," Sirius said jokingly. "I suppose everyone wants the bed closest to the window…"

"No, I don't like that," Remus said quickly. "The moonlight always shines in my eyes. But—is it okay if I have the one nearest the bathroom?"

"Why?" said Pettigrew, and Sirius elbowed him because even he knew that was rude.

"I…I get ill a lot," Remus explained, embarrassed, and stared out the bay window nervously. "Um, every once in a while, I mean. Not always. Most of the time I'm fine. But I—"

"It's fine, quit babbling," said James, gently prodding Remus in the direction of his desired bed. "Okay, Remus has the bed he wants, and now the rest of us will draw straws to see who gets the window bed, got it?"

"Got it," said Sirius and Pettigrew.

So the three of them drew straws. Pettigrew got the longest straw, which meant he got the window bed. Sirius opted for the bed by Remus, and James sat on the bed in between Sirius and Pettigrew.

"Thanks for what you did on the train, by the way, Sirius," James was saying.

"What?"

"You didn't squeeze yourself in between Lily and Snape on purpose?"

"Of course I did!" Sirius laughed. "I'm your wingman, what else was I supposed to do? You could say the opportunity fell into my lap."

"I've never felt that way about anyone before," James told him softly, staring up at the ceiling. "She was just so…perfect. I can't stop thinking about her."

"James Potter, mate, you've been bitten by the _love bug_ ," Sirius told him, grinning.

"Have you all brushed your teeth yet?" Remus demanded, poking his head out of the bathroom. "Just because your moms aren't here doesn't mean you don't have to brush your teeth."

"Don't _you_ start acting like my mom, Remus," said James, rummaging in his trunk. "Hmm…where did I pack that stuff again?"

"Well, it's in your toiletries bag, right?" Remus said casually.

"In my _what_?"

"You have a separate bag for your toiletries, a separate bag for your underwear, a separate bag for—oh, come on, am I the only one who packed properly?" Remus looked frustrated. "You _do_ know you're going to be here for the better part of a year, right? You need to be organized!"

"Honestly? I just tossed everything I owned into a trunk," James admitted.

"Me too," said Sirius. "You sure you're a boy, Remus?"

"Yes, I am, just not a slob." Remus didn't look angry, just a little exasperated as he took out a collapsible clothes hamper and set it up in the corner of the room. "Now if you can't find those things, or you left them at home, they have a bath set for a Galleon at the school bookstore, and if you pay an extra Sickle you get the toiletries set too. Of course, if you're a Prefect you get the bath set free and only have to pay a Knut for the toiletries set, but seeing as we're too young to be Prefects…"

"I could see you being a Prefect, Remus," said Sirius, and he meant it.

"Me? Oh, no." Remus blushed red and laughed nervously. "I-I'm not a Prefect…"

"What's in the bath set?" asked Pettigrew.

"It's got a bathrobe, slippers, pajamas, five different sizes of towels, a bath mat, and they're all in House Pride colors. And, um, there's more…"

"What else is there?" Sirius asked.

"They don't let you buy it unless you're at least a fourth year," said Remus, looking embarrassed again, "but it's…undergarments, and not exactly the terribly practical kind."

Sirius let out a loud wolf whistle, and James laughed.

"Now I know what to give Lily," James told everyone. "I'll have to get a fourth-year to buy it for me, though. So, it comes in House Pride colors, huh?"

"Oh, James, you're awful!" Remus glared at him. "You want the toiletry set too though. They've got toothbrushes, toothpaste, combs, shampoo and conditioner, stuff like that—and they're all in House Pride colors too, of course."

"I'd gift that shampoo and conditioner to Snape," Sirius muttered.

"You'd spend money on him?" James asked in disbelief.

"Ah, yes, good point." Sirius nodded. "Maybe I'd just show them to him. Introduce him to them, y'know? Maybe the soap too."

Pettigrew, Sirius and James laughed, while Remus took out a glass of water and a bottle of Advil, with a chocolate bar to wash it down.

"Advil," said Pettigrew. "When I have a headache, my mom doesn't let me have anything stronger than Tylenol."

"Yes, well, my headaches have been getting worse since last summer, unfortunately," Remus explained, getting out two of the little pills. "I started getting these awful muscle cramps every so often too. So they finally decided it was okay for me to switch to an OTC anti-inflammatory. Tylenol is fine for minor headaches, but it doesn't do crap for body pain."

"I hope you'll be okay," said James, feeling real concern for his friend.

"Don't worry." Remus sighed and turned his gaze towards the window, but his roommates couldn't see what he was looking at. "I'll be fine."

Once he'd downed the medicine, he grabbed another bar of chocolate and got down onto his bed, then pulled out a book— _The Standard Book of Spells, Grade 1_.

"When do classes start?" asked Sirius. "They don't start tomorrow, do they?"

"No, they start on Monday the sixth." Remus let out another deep sigh. "I hope I'll be able to attend, as I haven't exactly been feeling my best lately…I mean, I can't miss the first-ever day of school! And I'm taking morning classes, too…"

"You're taking _morning classes_?" Sirius lay back on the four-poster, his arms crossed behind his head. "You mean those classes at 7 and 8 am? What are you, nuts? Those are our precious sleeping-in hours!"

"Look, an education is an opportunity that not everyone has, and you need to take it seriously." Remus buried his head in his book. "Now, I'm trying to study, in—in case I miss Monday."

"Don't worry, mate," Sirius reassured him. "If you are sick, we'll get all the homework for you. Since we're in the same House and the same year, we have all the Core classes together."

"Oh, yes," said Remus, his eyes not leaving his book, his hand groping around for a third chocolate bar. "I would appreciate that."


	4. Orientation

_September 3, 1971_

 _Hogwarts Castle_

Friday was Orientation, to make sure the first years would have at least a little inkling of where to go on Monday. Almost everyone was nervous, although their Heads of Houses reassured them that if they paid attention during Orientation, things would be a little easier—and besides, most teachers cut first years a little slack if they were late.

Of course, as was everything, Orientation was segregated by House.

"Everyone find a buddy!" McGonagall was shouting, as the first-years milled around talking. "I don't have all day! Everyone find a buddy!"

James rushed to Lily's side before anyone else could, secretly glad that her stupid friend Snape wasn't here to interfere this time.

"Want to be my buddy?" he panted.

"Why isn't Sirius your buddy?" Lily asked, raising her eyebrow.

"Sirius is already Remus's buddy," James told her, pointing to Sirius, who was talking to a rather peaky-looking Remus. Of course, this arrangement had been planned well in advance.

"Oh…all right." Lily walked in time with James, who gave Sirius the thumbs-up as they passed.

McGonagall wasn't really telling them much about the mysteries of the school. All she was telling them was where their classrooms were, where the bathrooms were, simple things like that. They walked past the Forbidden Forest, which, as McGonagall strictly reminded them, was off-limits; the lake, where there was a giant squid drifting lazily in the water; the greenhouses…

"If we're not allowed to go in the Forbidden Forest," said Sirius, raising his hand, "why is it even there?"

"Because nature is beautiful," Professor McGonagall snapped.

Professor McGonagall led them to the school bookstore, where all first years got to pick out a free gift as long as it was under a Galleon. Sirius, James, Remus and Pettigrew all picked out red-and-gold Gryffindor scarves. Lily got a Gryffindor hair clip. They were also made to buy their uniforms. Everyone had to wear a white button-down and a tie with their House colors; boys had to wear slacks and dress shoes, while girls had to wear a House colors skirt, white silk or nylon stockings and black Mary-Jane shoes. They had it all at the bookstore. They had _everything_ at the bookstore.

After going to the bookstore, the first-year Gryffindors stopped at the bathrooms so they could change into their crisp new uniforms before they continued the rest of the tour.

"I expect you all to wash these regularly, at the very _least_ once a week," McGonagall said, glaring at the boys in their slacks.

"Yes, Professor McGonagall," they droned—boys _and_ girls.

"All right then, chop-chop, time for our next activity…Icebreakers!"

Most of the class groaned, but Professor McGonagall ignored it.

"The objective of the icebreaker," Professor McGonagall explained, "is to say out loud one thing you notice about your buddy, one thing you want them to notice about you, and one fun thing you hope to get to do together this year."

When it was Sirius's turn, he said, "I notice that Remus likes school, I want him to notice how much fun we're going to have this year, and I hope we get to go to lots of school parties together."

"I-I notice that Sirius is cool, I want him to notice how I'm a good friend, and I hope I'm in a lot of his classes."

When it was Lily's turn, she said, "I notice that James likes Quidditch, I want him to notice that I try to be a very good person, and I hope for us to…to attend a Quidditch game together."

"I notice that Lily has beautiful green eyes, I want her to notice that I am practically perfect in every way, and I hope to go on a date with her this Saturday night."

"MR. POTTER!" McGonagall yelled. "Five points from Gryffindor! That is very disrespectful to Miss Evans!"

"How 'bout it, Evans?" James grinned hopefully.

"NO!" Lily yelled. "If we weren't stuck as buddies…"

As they were passing back to the castle across the grounds, that was where they ran into the Slytherins. Snape saw that James was Lily's buddy, and he shot James a poisonous look, his black eyes glittering in their sunken sockets, his oily locks almost obscuring them from view. James sneered triumphantly, but Lily just huffed.


	5. Potions Class

_September 6, 1971_

 _Dungeons, Hogwarts Castle_

The first day of school was terrorizing for the new students—but, as Lily pointed out, when has it ever not been? Even with Orientation in the rearview mirror, Hogwarts was hard to navigate. The first-years huddled around each other in packs as if this would somehow protect them, while seventh-years thought it would be funny to tell them there was a secret magical escalator on the fourth floor only it was really just an old supply closet, or give them wrong directions, or stop them in the hallways demanding that they sing the school song or get their head stuck in a toilet.

Gryffindor (and, as it turns out, Slytherin) first-years had Potions for first period on Mondays—well, except for Remus, since he'd already been to his 7 and 8 am classes while everyone else slept in. Sirius and James walked to Potions class without him.

"I'm a little concerned about Remus," Sirius whispered to James. "Do you remember how horribly he was doing yesterday?"

"How could I forget?" James whispered back.

Remus, from the moment they met him, had struck Sirius and James as a little odd. Mostly he seemed nerdy in a charming sort of way, and nice too, although every so often he'd snap at you like a crab; he was constantly complaining of muscle cramps and headaches, and what was it with the chocolate obsession? Yesterday, though, he'd been worse than they'd ever seen him. All he did was lay in bed and cry for them to bring him his meds. All three of them felt sorry for him, so they took turns keeping him company in the dorms, helping him to the bathroom, getting him his chocolate. When Sirius had been sitting with him he started crying and claimed it was a big mistake coming here, that he didn't want to spend the night away from home, he was scared…Sirius figured the meds had made him lose his senses. They'd heard him crying all night before they dropped off to sleep.

The next morning when the three of them woke up, his bed was already empty. It was 7:30 in the morning; they had an hour and a half to shower, get dressed, and find their way to Potions. Breakfast would be held in the Great Hall after first period.

When the two boys entered the class, their teacher, Professor Slughorn, was already standing behind his desk and smiling at the students. (They knew their teachers' names, since they'd met them at Orientation.) Lily was already there; so was Snape, and James was alarmed to see them talking to each other. Pettigrew was there, too, standing by an empty cauldron.

Sirius and James were surprised when Remus turned up next to them, panting. Now, he looked a little better than yesterday, but not much. Certainly he didn't look like he should have gotten out of bed at six in the morning and tried to find his way around a gigantic, brand-new magical school 100% alone. His eyes were sunken and a little red too, he was out of breath, he was pale as a ghost, and he looked as though one strong breeze could finish him off.

"Remus, you—you look terrible," said James.

"You would too if you already had two early morning classes to get through with a headache like this!" Remus said hotly.

"Did you do well?" Sirius asked.

"What's it to you?" he demanded; James and Sirius saw there were tears in his eyes.

"Remus isn't having a good first day," said James, as Remus stomped off to the cauldron near Pettigrew.

"All right, that's enough, everyone, settle down!" Professor Slughorn clapped his hands. "Please get out your books, _1000 Magical Herbs and Fungi_ , and pick a partner quickly. The ingredients table is in the back. I encourage you to discuss the methods of potion-making with your partner but _please_ …" Professor Slughorn looked as if years and years of teaching middle- and high-school age students was taxing to his health. " _Try_ to focus on the course material. I will put the instructions on the board."

Professor Slughorn tapped the board with his wand, and there were the instructions.

"This is a simple acne-curing potion, which I'm sure most of you will be needing desperately in a year or two," Professor Slughorn told them. "When you're done, please give a vial to me with both partners' names on it."

Lily and Snape paired up almost immediately, aided by the fact that they had already been in close vicinity. James and Sirius were partners; Remus was partnered with Pettigrew. After the students had been working on their potions for a bit, it was clear to see who was good and who wasn't.

James and Sirius were getting along fine; Potions came pretty easy to them. Snape and Lily had the best potion in the class. Remus and Pettigrew, however, were not getting along so well.

"By now," said Professor Slughorn as he paced around the room, "your potions should be turning blue, and they should have the consistency of chicken broth."

The Pettigrew/Remus potion was yellowish-orange, and it had the consistency of cement.

"Try putting some shredded carrots in," Pettigrew whispered. When Remus dropped them in, the cauldron bubbled ominously and turned gray.

"Peter," said Remus shakily, "I don't think this is going to do our skin any good."

Professor Slughorn eyed them shrewdly as he passed, then said, "Miss Evans, kindly switch with Mr. Lupin, thank you."

"Not a problem at all, Professor," said Lily as she navigated to Pettigrew's cauldron, but Snape said loudly, "Why?"

"Because…because…" Professor Slughorn looked nervous. "Because I thought he looks like a nice boy to work with."

Everyone knew the real reason why they switched—teachers liked to pair the talented students with the not-so-talented ones, so (ideally) there wouldn't be any project that was a total train-wreck. Lily was good at Potions, and so was Snape. Pettigrew and Remus both seemed to stink at it. After the switch, the class continued working on their potions.

Sirius was watching their potion as it simmered; he was sure he would never have any problems with his skin, but if he did, this potion would take care of it in a minute. James was watching Lily with misty eyes as she helped Pettigrew with the potion, tenderly showing him how to slice the rhubarbs.

Snape was not so easy on Remus.

"NO, NO, _NO!"_ Snape hollered as their potion exploded, sending both of them flying backwards onto the cold stone floor.

"I'm sorry!" Remus sounded on the verge of tears. "I'm just bad at Potions!"

"What else is new?" Snape hissed, and raised his hand. "Professor, may I have a new partner? Mine appears to be incompetent."

But at that comment Remus really did cry, and James and Sirius were livid on his behalf.

"KNOCK IT OFF, SNIVELLUS!" Sirius hollered, banging his fist on the table, making his own cauldron wobble a bit.

"Yeah, you better back off, you ugly, big-nosed git!" James added, pulling his wand out of his pocket.

"Don't you two call me names!" Snape drew his wand out too and pointed it at James's heart.

"We'll do what we like!" said Sirius sharply, and James jabbed his wand into Snape's chest.

"BRING IT ON!" Snape screeched.

"Severus!" Lily cried, abandoning the freaked-out Pettigrew and running over to them. "What on Earth do you think you're doing? Stop, they're not worth it!"

Sirius swore he could see steam coming out of James's ears at that comment.

"Evans, get OUT of it!" James roared as she ran between Sirius, James and Snape, trying to split up the fight. "You deserve better than this filthy waste of life!"

Remus was crying, Peter was freaking out, James, Sirius and Snape were all pointing their wands at each other, sparks flying out the ends like fireworks, Lily was trying to split it all up—

"That is _enough_!" Professor Slughorn looked horrified. "Mr. Black, Mr. Potter, Mr. Snape—ten points each from your respective Houses, and detention as well! You _know_ it's against the rules to draw your wand in class unless otherwise instructed! Miss Evans, ten points to Gryffindor for trying to stop them. Mr. Lupin…"

Professor Slughorn leaned down next to Remus, who by now was almost hysterical.

"Mr. Lupin, you know you didn't have to come to class today."

"Yes, I-I did!" he wailed. "E-Even my 7 am class! It's—it's my first day! I c-couldn't afford to miss anything!"

"Mr. Pettigrew, please take Mr. Lupin to Madame Pomfrey for a calming drought," Professor Slughorn said calmly. "The rest of you, please get back to work. Mr. Black, Mr. Potter, Mr. Snape, I never want to see such inappropriate conduct again in this classroom, do you understand?"

"We understand," all three of them said glumly.

Pettigrew returned alone; he went back to Lily, and Snape paired up with some Slytherin student they didn't know. The hour was almost up, and things seemed to be calming down. James and Sirius continued waiting for their potion to be finished, while Lily and Pettigrew played catch-up. Their potion, like the James/Sirius one, was the desired finished-product green.

 _She's so beautiful_ , James thought longingly, leaning on his elbow as he watched her chatting casually to Pettigrew. _If only she'd let me hex Snape_ …

"James! _James_! JAMES, THE CAULDRON!"

"Whuh?" James was snapped out of his love-thoughts by Sirius's voice—and his horror. Apparently as he watched Lily he had been leaning his elbow on the side of their cauldron, and before Sirius could do anything, it had tipped over onto the floor, the green liquid seeping through their dress shoes and into their socks. Professor Slughorn slowly walked over to them; he was wearing the facial expression of a man trying to pass a kidney stone the size of a watermelon.

"Mr. Black, Mr. Potter," he said grimly. "I realize this was an accident, so I'm not going to punish you. If you want to receive credit for this potion, you will return to the dungeons at six to re-brew it."

"Um…sorry, mate," James muttered to Sirius as the class laughed.

"It's all right." Sirius shrugged. "Some day we're having, though, huh?"

James shook his head. "And it's not even breakfast."


	6. Lunch

They didn't see Remus at breakfast, or at any of their other classes that morning. When it was time for lunch, they all took seats together at the Gryffindor table and talked. Lily sat there too, with some trepidation.

"So, what happened after you took Remus to the hospital wing?" James asked Pettigrew.

"I took him there…" Pettigrew was buttering his bread. "And it was like I wasn't even there. She started freaking out at him and asking why he'd gone to class, telling him he should've stayed up in the dorms, like Slughorn said."

"That's not entirely unexpected," Sirius pointed out. "You saw how sick he was…"

"But did you see? Those cuts on his face." Pettigrew leaned closer to his roommates and lowered his voice. "They're _fresh_. And on his arms, too. They were barely scabbed over, didn't you notice?"

"Of course we noticed," said Sirius. "I'm not sure how to explain something like that, though."

"Well…" Lily looked concerned. "You…you don't suppose he's… _harming_ himself, do you? You know, on purpose?"

"Why would he do that?" James asked, staring at her.

"There are a lot of reasons why people do it." Lily frowned at her plate.

"I remember he really lost it last night about spending the night away from home," Sirius recalled. "I guess he was homesick."

" _Homesick?_ " Lily looked at him in disbelief.

"Best I can think of, Lily." Sirius just shrugged. "I figured at the time he was just high off of Advil."

"Do you think we should just ask him what those cuts are all about?" said Pettigrew.

"Absolutely not," Lily told them. "It's none of our business. Besides, we should stop talking about him now. We're gossiping, and I don't want to gossip…that's what Petunia does."

"Petunia?" James asked.

"My older sister," Lily explained, looking a little crestfallen. "She…she thinks magical people are weird."

"I don't know why people on _both_ sides can't just forget this nonsense!" Sirius looked frustrated. "Just because it's different—just because you don't understand it—doesn't mean it's wrong! _My_ family hates Muggles and blood traitors and squibs. _Your_ family apparently hates anyone who can do magic. Apparently, we just _can't_ get along."

"My parents are okay with magic," Lily told him. "I don't know why Petunia isn't. Maybe she's jealous or something."

"Who wouldn't be jealous of you?" said James, winking, and she rolled her eyes. That was when they spotted someone else standing by the corner of the table, staring at them shyly, holding a plate of food, eyes wide like a house-elf's—

"Remus!" Sirius hollered, waving him over. "What are you doing, standing over there? Come and sit with us."

By now he looked as nervous as he had on the train, but Remus walked over to the four of them.

"Hello again," he said timidly. "Madame Pomfrey said I should probably rest today and catch up with school tomorrow…but she said I could eat lunch in the Great Hall."

"Well, we're glad to have you, mate," said Sirius, scooting over. "You must be famished."

"And don't worry about the notes, we can get them for you," Lily added, so Remus sat down.

Just as Lily had urged, nobody mentioned the now-bandaged scrapes on Remus's face and arms—supposedly he had gotten them fixed up in the hospital wing. Instead they talked more about their families.

"We were just talking about Lily's Muggle family here, Remus," James said conversationally. "What was your sister's name again?"

"Petunia," Lily replied. "She goes to a Muggle middle school, and she says that at lunch, you have to sit at a table based on what group you're part of or what you're good at or something. Like there's a table for nerds, a table for weird kids, a table for popular kids…"

"And, what, the _teachers_ designate these or something?" Sirius looked incredulous.

"No, the kids do," Lily told him. "That's what makes it so difficult. You just kind of have to know where to go. And if you don't, you have to eat in the bathroom."

"The _bathroom?_ " Remus looked horrified. "That's unsanitary."

"No doubt," said Lily. "I was terrified of going to the Muggle middle school. So I was happy when I got a letter saying I'd be going here instead."

"But that's not to say that sort of thing doesn't happen here," Remus told her. "Haven't you heard about first years getting stopped in the hallway and getting their heads dunked in the toilet if they don't sing the school song? Or what about that one kid who asked a sixth-year for directions, and the sixth-year told him Potions class was held in the Divination tower?"

"Well, it was his fault for being stupid enough to believe that," James scoffed.

"It's the dorms too, though," Lily continued. "One of the girls in my dorm straightens her hair every day, but she uses a flat-iron, so every morning the whole dorm smells like burnt hair."

"Peter takes all the hot water in the morning," said Sirius.

"Anyway…" Lily looked at her watch. "We have about twenty minutes left of lunch. What class do we have next?"

"Herbology, with the Hufflepuffs," James told her. "I can't wait for Thursday, though."

"Why?" said Sirius, biting the meat off a chicken leg. "What's on Thursday?"

"Flying!" James grinned.


End file.
